Month: May 2020

KCK Police Department to receive $1.3 million federal grant to hire officers

The Kansas City, Kansas, Police Department will receive a $1.3 million federal grant for hiring police officers under the Justice Department’s Operation Relentless Pursuit initiative, U.S. Attorney Stephen McAllister said.

The grant is part of more than $61 million the Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS Office) and the Office of Justice Programs’ Bureau of Justice Assistance have awarded to support the Relentless Pursuit initiative.

“This award will fund five new positions on the police department in Kansas City, Kan.,” U.S. Attorney Stephen McAllister said in a news release. “That additional manpower is part of our plan to make metro Kansas City safer.”

Launched on Dec. 18, 2019, ORP aims to intensify federal law enforcement resources into seven American cities with violent crime levels several times the national average – Albuquerque, Baltimore, Cleveland, Detroit, Kansas City, Memphis, and Milwaukee.

“While violent crime is down across the country as a whole, some communities remain caught in the grips of violent actors,” Attorney General William P. Barr said in the news release. “That’s why I launched Operation Relentless Pursuit last December – an initiative to combat violent crime in seven cities where it remains stubbornly high. Today’s grant awards are critical to our mission. We cannot succeed in eradicating crime without resources – the most vital of which are the brave men and women who serve and protect our communities each day. These funds will boost the forces that need them most.”

The COPS Office, through its COPS Hiring Program (CHP), awarded a total of $51 million to be used to hire 214 sworn law enforcement officers for state and local law enforcement task forces. The recipients of the funding will deploy existing veteran officers to task force duties and use the CHP funding to hire new recruits to backfill those positions, as practical. Officers deployed to Operation Relentless Pursuit task forces as a result of CHP funding must be sworn, career law enforcement officers of the awarded agency, and their work on the task force must benefit their jurisdiction. In addition, they are required to work with their respective U.S. Attorney’s Office (USAO) and rel¬evant federal agencies to investigate and prosecute suspects involved in gangs, drug trafficking, and other violent crime– related issues.

“Successful strategies to target and reduce violent crime are extremely resource intensive,” COPS Office Director Phil Keith said. “There is no greater resource than additional men and women on the front lines of relentless fight against gangs, drug traffickers and those that mean harm to our nation’s communities. The funding announced today is greatly needed for the Operation Relentless Pursuit jurisdictions and the COPS Office is honored to dedicate resources for this effort.”

The Office of Justice Programs’ Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) is making $10 million available to support Operation Relentless Pursuit. BJA funds will support efforts such as the hiring of additional prosecutors, overtime expenses for task force members, multi-agency investigations, mobile data terminals and modern technological platforms, and development of strategic plans to address gaps in combating violent crime.

“The responsibility for fighting crime and violence belongs to agencies at every level of government, and winning that fight turns on our ability to deploy our collective resources wisely and effectively,” Office of Justice Programs Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Katharine T. Sullivan said. “We are eager to make these funds available so that our federal, state and local partners can continue the vital and noble work of protecting America’s most dangerous communities.”

Family says Lansing Correctional Facility worker died this week from COVID-19

George “Bernie” Robare, left, died of COVID-19 on May 11. He is the first prison employee in Kansas known to have died of the virus. He is pictured with his wife, Susan Robare of Bonner Springs. (Courtesy of Rachel Robare)

by Nomin Ujiyediin, Kansas News Service

George “Bernie” Robare, 61, had worked at the Lansing Correctional Facility in northeast Kansas for more than 35 years. His wife, Susan Robare, told the Kansas News Service that he woke up with a headache and a fever on April 22 and was tested for the coronavirus at the Wyandotte County Health Department.

His positive test result came back two days later, and George Robare was later admitted to Providence Medical Center in Kansas City, Kansas, where he died Monday morning.

The Lansing Correctional Facility has one of the largest outbreaks of COVID-19 in Kansas, with 694 out of 1,700 inmates testing positive for the virus as of Monday. Almost 600 of those cases are asymptomatic. Three people who were incarcerated in the prison died of the virus — two over the age of 50 and one over the age of 60.

Almost 90 Lansing staff members have tested positive for the virus, and Robare, who was a corrections supervisor, is the first known death.

The Kansas Department of Corrections confirmed an employee of the Lansing prison died May 11, but did not provide the name.

“Our staff put themselves on the frontlines every day, but especially during this pandemic,” corrections secretary Jeff Zmuda said in an emailed statement. “We extend our deepest sympathy to his family and to those who worked alongside him for so many years.”

Robare’s wife said in a phone interview that he likely contracted the coronavirus at the prison.

“Once we came home, we never went anywhere,” she said.

She also said she and her husband felt the corrections department’s protections for staff were inadequate. The first cases at Lansing were in staffers, announced by the corrections department on March 31.

“They should have stepped up sooner,” Susan Robare said. “I feel that once we knew it was in the area, that things should have been handled differently.”

Their daughter, Rachel Robare, said she hoped people in the community would take the coronavirus more seriously.

“I feel like this has stolen something from me that I can’t get back, and people need to realize it’s not about you,” she said. “You have to protect the other people in this country.”

Nomin Ujiyediin reports on criminal justice and social welfare for the Kansas News Service. You can email her at nomin (at) kcur (dot) org and follow her on Twitter @NominUJ.
The Kansas News Service is a collaboration of KCUR, Kansas Public Radio, KMUW and High Plains Public Radio focused on health, the social determinants of health and their connection to public policy. Kansas News Service stories and photos may be republished by news media at no cost with proper attribution and a link to ksnewsservice.org.
See more at https://www.kcur.org/news/2020-05-12/family-says-lansing-correctional-facility-worker-died-this-week-from-covid-19.

Flags to be flown at half-staff on Wednesday in honor of Officer Mosher

Gov. Laura Kelly has ordered U.S. flags to be flown at half-staff on Wednesday, May 13, until sunset throughout Kansas in honor of Overland Park Police Officer Mike Mosher.

“Officer Mosher tragically lost his life in the line of duty, while protecting his community,” Gov. Kelly said. “He was dedicated to service, and we owe him immeasurable gratitude for his career-long commitment to helping others.”

In accordance with Executive Order 20-30, the governor also ordered all flags at public institutions throughout Kansas to be flown at half-staff from sunrise to sunset on Friday, May 15, in observance of Peace Officers Memorial Day. President Donald J. Trump issued a proclamation on Peace Officers Memorial Day and Police Week 2020 that called for the lowering of the flag.

“This week, as we honor the loss of one fallen officer, we also must recognize the continued sacrifices all of our law enforcement officers make as they serve and protect,” Gov. Kelly said. “We are able to live freely because of the brave women and men who suit up every day to protect our communities.”